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The Go liege News
VOL. XIII. No. 24/
BRYN MAWR (AND WAYNE). PA., WEDNESDAY, MAY 4,1927
PRICE 10 CENTS
GREAT IDEALISTS
ALSO REALISTIC
Aristophanes' Omelet Vulgar
in Detail, But Ideal
in Toto.
PLATO NOT DEAD TO US
% -----------
"The terms 'Realism' and 'Idealism' are
as vague and difficult to define as Clas-
sicism and Romanticism," said Dr. Paul
Shorey. speaking to the. college on Fri-
day evening. April :.".�. "The best writers
transcend the distinction. But one can
distinguish between a higher and lower
realism, a stronger and a weaker ideal-
ism. The higher realism concerns truth
and concreteness. the lower, insistence on
sordid details; the stronger idealism is ji
noble interpretatiion of life, the weaker
an evasion, a flight from unpleasantness."
The first of the great writers. Homer,
matie the union between the higher real-
ism and the stronger idealism. He shows
us an entire civilization so clearly that
we know it better than any except our
own; not by mere enumeration of details,
but by the artistic use of them, and con-
tinuity of physical sequence.
Every gentleman has a list of things
that he never mentions. Homer's list is
unusually long; he does not talk about
details of animal existence, the weather,
indigestion, the minor miseries of mortal
life. This is a kind of idealism that
modem writers call tlie "fear of fac-
ing life." Besides this negative idealism
of omission, Homer has a positive ideal-
ism that is seen in the whole temper and
spirit of his works. However terrible
life may be. it never loses its zest, its dig-
nity, its beauty. One finds no trace of
the low tide of sordid black dispair of
American realistic tragedies like Miner
Gantry.
Idealism in Lyric Poetry
Lyric poetry hardly raises the issue be-
tween realism and idealism. The Greek
lyricists dwell on food and drink, speak
fully of their feelings and passions; they
never let concealment prey overlong upon
ttyem. Whatever realism they show lies
in their satirical touches.
The belief in an absolute beauty is
the supreme idealism, and that is Sap-
pho's. The lyrics of Sappho are a theme
for rhapsody; not analysis.
Pindar, the lyric poet of whom we
know the most, is an idealist in two as-
pects: the grand style, and the power
of Greek literature to transfigure ex-
perience. Our chief pleasure in any ex-
perience is in its after taste, its memories.
Since Pindar wrote there will always
be 'some people whom his poems can
startle more than any .personal experi-
ence. He is also the\ unapproachable
model of the grand style.
Greek Tragedy Develops Ireal
Plato tells of Socrates saying that the
real poet could do tragedy and comedy
equally well. The Greeks could discrimi-
nate, however; they did not look for
every pleasure in tragedy. The Greek
tragedy is the development of idealism;
it stimulates actuality. Realistic detail
would have been out of keeping with its
stately conversations. Euripides, how-
ever, is praised by modern critics for add-
ing bourgeois realism to a type of work
unsuited to it. He brings common people
on the stage and uses vulgarisms and the
kind of word that the lady could not
find in Dr. Johnson's Dictionary.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
Pease in Greece
.Miss Mary Z. Pease has been
awarded an anonymous scholar-
ship of the value of $800 for the
study of Archaeology in Athens.
Miss Pease will leave in Septein-
lier for Greece where she will
spend at least a year in the Amer-
ican Schopl of Classical Studies.
FRENCH POETRY
CHANGED BY WAR
Claudel Led Movement of
"Neo Symbolists" to
Acceptance.
M. FAY HAS NEW FIELD
Dr. Sry/rey Likes Bryn Mawr
"I amftoo tired to think of anything
more to say," said Dr. Shorey, when in-
terviewed after his lecture, "except how
delighted I am to, be back again at Bryn
Mawr. I first taught here at a sensitive
period. Bryn Mawr is perhaps the only
place that has ever engaged my affections
as a place. The welcome I received to-
night warmed the cockles of my heart."
When asked if Bryn Mawr seemed
the same as when he was here, Dr.
Shorey said (hat he really could not tell.
"How do I know what you young ladies
are thinking about now?"
Dr. Shorey's associations with the col-
* ' have endured for the thirVit years
that he has been away from us.< "Only
last year," he observed, "I sent some
Latin verses to your Alumnae magazine."
V
French poetry, according to M. Fay,
exchange professor at Columbia, who
spoke before the French Club in Taylor
Hall on Saturday evening, April 30, be-
came most original and keen as a result of
the recent great moral crisis, the World
War. Its present tendency is towards a
technical renaissance, which will serve
as the point of departure from which
writers of the future may learn to ex-
press, by means of new poetical instru-
ments, the more complex emotions which
man has begun to analyze. The modern
ear and intelligence are not yet ac-
customed to these theories, but. with
time, the world will come to realize that
their importance lies in the fact of their
expression of that which is most "aigu
et tendu." and in the new creative forces
which they put to work.
The only possible way in which to
define poetry concisely is by means of
contrasting it to other forms of litera-
ture. Whereas history is concerned With
events and has a tendency toward realism,
the novel with the development of char-
acters and a plot, and the drama with
some sort of social problem, poetry must
be spontaneous, original, and concerned
with the freedom of the human soul; the
important characteristic of this last es-
sential is the way in which it varies ac-
cording to tlie country and the civiliza-
tion in and by which it is conceived.
French Are Intellectual
The French poetry differs materially
from the Gvman and the Anglo-Saxon;
the latter twmmay be likened to a kind
of rnetaphysicjfcdrunkenness, a delirious
enthusiasm wfiicli expresses only the in-
dividuality wjkft P�ct; it is not intelli-
gent, but, ramer, incredible. The French
poetic exaltation is very different, since
in it we find a mania for thought and for
analysis; there is a combination of the
exalted sentiment with the intelligence
CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 �
MARY HELEN RITCHIE MEMORIAL FUND
TO BUY BOOKS FOR STUDENTS! BUILDING
May Day's List of Graduate
Fellowships Longer
� Than Ever.
MANY NEW RESIDENTS
DANCES OF DEATH
TO BE DRAMATIZED
G. Prokosch Has Arranged a
Series of Pantomimes on
Diverse Themes.
PEJAWAH PLAYS FLUTE
Novel dances oif mediaeval and primi-
tive themes will be presented this Friday
evening at 8 o'clock in the Cloisters by
a number of students. Miss Prokosch
lias composed and directed this pageant.
The principle group of dance panto-
mimes is based on old wood-cuts of the
Dances of Death by Holbein. These
macabre themes have been set to modern
music. Miss Prokosch will impersonate
Death, with Alice Glover in the roll of
the Gypsy. ^
Other dances are a series of the^teur
F.lements and an Indian Ritual, which is
modeled on authentic American Indian
ceremonies. It is rumored that one of
the members of the Pejawah Tribe is to
furnish the musical accompaniment on
native flute and 'tom-tom. Dances of
Metals and Machinery and an original
cotnpositidn* by Laura M. +Ialey com-
plete the second part of the program.
Mr. Vernon Hammond is in charge of
the music. Nina Perera has designed the
costumes.
Tickets for the performance are now
on sale at the Publicity Office, Taylor
Hall.
"The more we know ourselves, the
injre we realize the vast areas as y t un-
known," said Miss Park in chapel May
Day morning. Little by little this are.t
is lieing limited by allowing students to
have a beginning of expert training while
yet in college, although this training can
actually begin only after the four year*
of college have been completed.
When Bryn Mawr was founded with the
opportunities for advanced work included
in its curriculum, eight out of the first
forty-four students were doing graduate
work. Today we have the largest de-
partment for women graduates in the
country. These, like Caleb and Joshua,
are sent out to discover and come back
to report. And what have they done in
the world? Three hundred arc teaching
in college faculties; three hundred are
on the faculties of schools; and three
hundred are in research. The resident
Fellowships this year were announced as
follows:
English, to Helen Pennock South, of
Philadelphia, A B., Wellesley College.
19i:i; M. A., Bryn Mawr College, 1926.
Romance languages (French) to Edith
Melcher. of Cynwya, Pa., A. B., Bryn
Mawr Coljege, 1923, and M. A., 1924;
(Spanish) to Mary Stedman Sweeney, of
.Mcthuen. Mass.. A. B., Radcliffe College.
1917. and M. A.. 1MB.
German to KaroFa Geiger, of Chicago,
M. A.. University of Chicago.
Biblical literature to Constance Mary
Arnold, of Waltham. Mass., A. B,
Mount Holyoke College. 1923. and M. A.,
1926.
History to Margaret Grace Harper, of
ISronxville. N. Y., A. B., Mount Holyoke
College. 1924.
Social Economy and Social Research
to Belle Boone Beard, f Boone Mill. Va.,
| A. B., Lynchburg College, 1923.
Philosophy to Gladys Bryson, of Car-
lisle, Ky., A. B., Georgetown College.
1918. M. A. to be conferred. University
of California. 1927.
Psychology to Jane Frances Faissler,
of Sycamore. III., A. B., University of
Illinois, 1926.
Education to Marguerite Lucille
Hutcheson, of Winnipeg. Manitoba,
Canada. A. B., Dalhousie University,
1920; M. A., 1921. .
Archaeology to Dorothy Burr, of
Philadelphia. A. B., Bryn Mawr College,
tii-':, and M. A., 1926.
Mathematics to Rose Alice Whclan, of
Campello, Mass.. Ph. B., Brown Univer-
sity. 1921. M. A. to lie conferred, Brown
University. 1927.
Physics to Margaret Blanche Hays, of
Swissvale. Pa., A. B., Oberlin College.
1924. M. S.. University of Pittsburgh,
1925.
Chemistry to Emma Margaret Dietz,
of Brooklyn. N. Y., A. B.. Barnard Col-
lege. 1925. M. A.. Columbia University.
1926.
Geology to Louise Kingsley, of Bing-
hamton, N. Y., A. B.. Smith College,
IMS, and M. A., 1924.
Biology to Esther Carpenter, of East
Haven. Conn., A. B., Ohio Wesleyan Uni-
versity, 1925; M. A., LTniversity of Wis-
consin. January, 1927.
Graduate Scholarships were awarded
as follows:
Scholarship in Latin to Ruth Elizabeth
Fairman. of Amherst, Mass., A. B.,
Mount Holyoke College, to be conferred.
1927, and to Aline Louise Abaecherli, of
Cincinnati. A. B.. University of Cincin-
nati, to be conferred. 1927. j -
English to Eleanor Grace Clark* of
Oberlin. Ohio, A. B., Oberlin College.
1918, and M. A., 1919. Also -to Rebecca
Garrett Rhoads. of Wilmington, Del..
A. B., Bryn Mawr College, 1918, B. Litt...
Oxford. University, to be conferred,
laZfCVAlso.tc* Aghef^?pr�Bu,. '_u.�v.r, of
Allentown. Pa., A. B� Cornell Univer-
sity, to be conferred, 1927.
CONTINUED ON PAQB 8
Sylvia Walker, '27,
as May Queen
DR. RUFUS JONES
TELLS OF INDIA
Eastern Thinkers, Lacking
Jesus, Seek in Vain for
Infinite.
MEETING WITH GANDHI
explain ins
the Indian,
mind ^ktain-
if the* mil
One of the most pathetic words in all
religious literature is a word in Sanscrit,
which means "the impossibility of find-
ing God." and which occurs again and
again in all the sacred books of India.
"When the seeker of God has climbed
as far as the ladder of reason or logic
will take him, he expresses his defeat by
this one hopeless word. He uses all the
ingenuity of his intellect and draws on
all tin- reason of wisdom ami insight, then
says 'Cod is not there.'"
There is a reason for this feeling of
utter helplessness which permeates the
inhabitants of India. Dr. Rums Jones,
.speaking in Chapel Sunday evening. May
1, gave as this reason the fact that the
people of India think of God as the ab-
solutely perfect Infinite and therefore
they l>elievc Him to be beyond^ every
thing finite and imperfect. No words can
explain his nature. He is according to
the All Holy. Whatever the
ins to. God is not there, because
ind attains to it�it become*
finite. No Babel building will ever take
us to Him. There arc no finite ladders
to the Infinite.
Seekers Return Empty-Handed
This is the sad result of thousands of
years' search after God in India and all
the East. They go out and come back
with empty hands, saying they have seen
and felt, but cannot say what it is. In
the temple of Isis a worshipper has writ-
ten these words expressing the impossi-
bility of the revelation of God, "I am
he that is and was and ever shall be.
and my veil has no man lifted."
The greatest religious genius in India
concluded that all finite desires and ac-
tions are futile, because they must neces-
sarily end in failure. The one consum-
mation of life worth striving for is the
revelation of God. In India one sees
men with finger nails 18 inches long,
who are thus incapacitated for doing
work. Others have held one arm up in
the air for 30 years. Thus they believe
that by doing nothing, they will avoid
doing wrong.
The basis of this great difficulty in
wrong thinking is the idea of the ab-
stract infinite. They believe that the in-
finite begins beyond the finite. The
problem of the ages. then, is to discover
the concrete infinite in which we can
feel at home. The Infinite is not beyond
the finite, but reveals itself throught the
finite.
Czar Had "Everlasting Yea"
When the Czar was attempting to build
a railroad from Petrog/ad>to, AIoscow,
he called a meeting of his* engineers, wfto
informed him of all the insurpassable
obstacles and suggested various means of
CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
Jean Leonard Wins Prize as
Best Essayist in Senior
Class.
GREGSON. '28, HAS CUM
Because no adequate prize can be
awarded for the traits of a personality,
the Mary Helen Ritchie Memorial prize,
generally known as "Sunny Jim," has been
abolished. The fund left by Miss Hoyt
in memory of her friead Miss Ritchie,
which has heretofore been used for the
prize awarded to the "outstanding mem-
ber of the Senior Class" will, in the
future, be used for books to be placed in
the Students' Building.
The undergraduate prizes and scholar-
ships were announced as follows :
The George W. Chrlds Essay Prize to
the best writer in the Senior Class, was
awarded to Jean Y. Leonard, '27. Hon-
orable mention was given to Elizabeth
Thomas Nelson, '27.
The Sheelah Kilroy Memorial Scholar-
ship in English, awarded to the student
who does the best work in the required
courses in English, went to Alice H.
Palache, 18,
The Sheelah Kilroy Memorial Scholar-
ship in English, awarded to the student,
who does the best work in advanced
courses in English, was given to Jean L.
Fesler. '28.
The Maria L. Eastman Brooke Hall
Memorial Scholarship, awarded to the
member of the Junior Class who in the
middle of her Junior year has the high-
est average, was given to Margaret
Gregson. ':.'�.
The Charles S. Hinchman Memorial
Scholarship, awarded for special ability
in one group subject, was given to Cath-
erine Field. '28.
The Elizabeth S. Shippen Scholarship
in Science, for excellent work in science,
was given to Esther Virginia Dikeman,
��8.
The Elizabeth S. Shippen Scholarship
in Foreign Languages, for excellence in
work in foreign languages, was given to
Elinor I'culah Amram, '28.
Elizabeth Duane Gillespie Scholarship
in American History and the Anna M.
Powers Memorial Scholarship were given
to Elizabeth Bethel. '28.
The Elizabeth Wilson White Memo-
rial Scholarship was given to Ruth Mar-
garet Peters. 28.
The St. Louis Alumnae Regional
Scholarship and a special James E.
Rhoads Scholarship were given to Caro-
l.vn Elizabeth Asplund. '28.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
Think of Opportunities�
Not of Difficulties of Job
"You have been hearing a great deal
lately about the opportunities for women
in different fields of work," said Mrs.
Manning, speaking in Chapel on Wednes-
day morning, April 27. "All of them
have pointed out the difficulties of getting
a job and 'making good.' But don't let
that discourage you. Look at the very
people who have talked to you, most of
them alumnae of the college, and you
will realize that they have all done well
in the fields they have chosen. Think
of the opportunities, not the difficulties.
of the profession you are interested jn."
There has been a movement lately in
favor of much vocational advice for stu-
dents, by the theory that you can test
out people as to what they would be good
at, force them into that path and keep
them there. By the time girls come to
college, however, most of them really
have more or less chosen; they know
what they are interested in. Tlie re-
sponsibility really rests on the student,
not on the college. It is tfp"t6jjjn6 in-
vestigate the different kinds of occupa-
tion for which we might have a gift.
We should learn not to be easily dis-
couraged at the thought of difficulties,
and consider that any field where women
^ave_alr""' -;ded offers opportujii--
ties. Almost everyone has an exceptional
gift in some direction, and if she cares,
it is up to her to persevere and she will
succeed.
a.